Christmas Treat From The Old Days

Nobody loved molasses more than my grandfather. It would not surprise me to learn that he ate it in some form most ot the days of his life.

I remember seeing him in the kitchen hand-grinding salt pork for this -- one of his favorites for Christmas time. And I remember seeing the proud look on his face when the finished product was ready to go with his inevitable cups of tea. Hmmm. I must ask Mom if he ever drank coffee. If he did, I don't remember it.

If there were no molasses cookies, gingerbread, or other such baked goods, he was content to finish his meal with a thick slice of home baked bread dotted with hard butter from the refrigerator and topped with a very meticulous swirl of molasses always poured from the "molasses jug" in a circular pattern that began in the center of the bread and ended at the edges of the slice. That sight was always fascinating to me -- Gramp was precise in everything he did, including the way he poured his molasses. (Funny what one remembers, isn't it?)